Tuesday, May 05, 2009

Open letter to Prime Minister of India

Dear Dr. Man Mohan Singh ji,Greetings from PVCHR.Please look the follow self-seffering story(testimony) of Raju.He says,"These repeated incidents made me so restless, anxious and apprehensive. As a result, I can not go out freely for works and it adversely affects to my social and economic life. The torturous memory of the incidents mars my sleep and many a times I feel rejected. I filed application to police to take action against the culprits but police turned a deaf ear to my plea. Sometimes some political party also came out explicitly against our movement. Police and political party are tampered and conspired with the company. Their dalals are shadowing us everywhere. My life is no more safe. I like my testimony be read out before a large crowd and used it for ensuring justice to the victim. I like the testimony be instrumental to enhance our movement for Jan, Jamin and Jungles (water, land and forests)."

I am Raju Lohra, age 35 years, a poor agricultural farmer belonging to Lohra tribe, a resident of Ramtoloya, Mauatoli, Gumla district Jharkhand. I have been bearing the brunt of violence being perpetuated by one multi national steel company (Laxmi Nrayan & Mittal) for the last four year. My fear is the ongoing land acquisition by the company, which will make us victims of internal displacement. The company have already surveyed over 12 villages within Kamdara block alone, for setting up steel factories and power plant and now, it is on the verge actual land acquisition process. My private land measuring 7 acres falls under the surveyed areas and I feel the very upcoming outcome. The company has resorted to many repressive means to subdue the ongoing movement voicing against the land acquisition process at the cost of lives of the poor tribal people. Dalals or the hired people of the company harassed those people involved in the movement for protection of Jal, Jamin, Jungles (water, land and jungles) belonged to the tribal peoples. I am also one of the victims of these Dalals of the company, who have been harassed and assaulted on three different occasions. The agony is that physical pain inflicted upon would go soon but psychological pain remains much longer time.

The first incident took place in August, 2005, I along with my wife were returning on a bicycle from a public meeting ( meeting against the land acquisition ) and about to enter at PAKUT bazaar for shopping. When we reached there, two unknown persons suddenly pulled me down from the running bicycle and assaulted me with punches. They threatened with dare consequences and warned me not to be involved further in the anti land acquisition movement and went off. I felt so humiliated and embarrassed since it was happened just before the eyes of his wife, and came back home with a heavy heart. The second incident occurred in September, 2005 at Pokla bazaar, from there I was abducted by the dalals of the Company. They took me away to a nearby place and beat me severely. They threatened me to stop anti company agitation or I would be finished off. The abductors fleet away seeing some villagers rushing to the spot. The third incident took place on 26th February, 2009, hardly a week ago, at Ararra village, in which a gang of dalals of the Company, suddenly attacked me with sticks on my chest. The attackers again asked me to immediately isolate myself from anti displacement movement. The attackers had to leave me as some people were approaching when hearing my cry for help.

These repeated incidents made me so restless, anxious and apprehensive. As a result, I can not go out freely for works and it adversely affects to my social and economic life. The torturous memory of the incidents mars my sleep and many a times I feel rejected. I filed application to police to take action against the culprits but police turned a deaf ear to my plea. Sometimes some political party also came out explicitly against our movement. Police and political party are tampered and conspired with the company. Their dalals are shadowing us everywhere. My life is no more safe. I like my testimony be read out before a large crowd and used it for ensuring justice to the victim. I like the testimony be instrumental to enhance our movement for Jan, Jamin and Jungles (water, land and forests).